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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22496002">Unspoken</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Schangia/pseuds/Schangia'>Schangia</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Bleach</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, also it's byakuya's birthday today so please celebrate, the feels i have for this ship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-01-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 08:00:33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,250</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22496002</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Schangia/pseuds/Schangia</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Byakuya and Hitsugaya aren't the best at verbally expressing their affection, but Hitsugaya has found another way that works pretty good for them.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hitsugaya Toushirou/Kuchiki Byakuya</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>115</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Unspoken</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hitsugaya wasn't the most expressive person out there, and despite some people claiming otherwise, he was very much aware of that. Most things simply didn't warrant any of his attention, while other situations would just lead to him having a rage-induced heart attack if he were to engage—Matsumoto played a big role in this, but he had long since given up on trying to change her.</p><p>It didn't bother Hitsugaya much that most of his colleagues and subordinates thought him able to express three emotions at most; anger, exasperation, and indifference. He knew this wasn't the truth—or at least not the whole truth—so he didn't care what other shinigami (or weird excuses for a human like Kurosaki Ichigo) thought.</p><p>Also, when it came to displaying emotions, he definitely wasn't the worst among the taichou.</p><p>Byakuya had mastered his composure to a level that made it impossible to tell whether he was controlling his emotions in any given situation or just wasn't physically capable of showing anything apart from condescending indifference on his face.</p><p>In contrast, Hitsugaya sometimes actually wanted to be better at expressing emotions—he just didn't know how, and was thus infinitely bad at it. He liked to think this knowledge made this whole mess slightly less sad.</p><p>Then again, it wasn't as if their relationship suffered from their lack of emotionality. Hitsugaya knew how much Byakuya cared about him without the other having to tell him every other minute, and he was sure Byakuya in turn knew how much he cherished every moment they could spend together.</p><p>He just felt that, sometimes, it would be nice to actually verbally express their affection—like most couples did.</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>*</p>
</div>It was one of those afternoons that curled around Seireitei like a fat black cat in the sun. At least that must've been what it felt like to Matsumoto, who currently made a point out of telling Hitsugaya just how bored and tired she was while lounging around on the couch in his office. Why he ever even put that damn thing there he didn't remember. It was like an invitation for her to laze around, really.<p>When Hitsugaya had pointed out that actually getting some paperwork done might do wonders to her boredom, Matsumoto had just whined more and pulled a magazine out of the sleeve of her shihakusho. As she was making herself more comfortable on the couch, she started mumbling to herself, muttering some passages out aloud.</p><p>“Aww, isn't that cute?”, she exclaimed after a few minutes. Hitsugaya knew he shouldn't get involved but couldn't stop himself in time.</p><p>“What is?”</p><p>“This article on how there are different ways of showing affection through action.”</p><p>Matsumoto pointed at the page without looking at him, as if she was expecting him to see what she was talking about all the way from behind his desk. He didn't, of course, and it was the first time he regretted not being involved with Matsumoto's weird recreational activities. That stupid article was heaven-sent.</p><p>“I don't get why you can't just tell someone you love them straight to their face, but the way this is written is just too adorable,” she continued matter-of-factly before pausing and taking a closer look at the page. “Oh, it's written by Shuuhei, that explains a lot then.”</p><p>Matsumoto went on some more, commenting on almost every sentence of the article, but Hitsugaya had long stopped listening to her. He was already thinking about how he could get his hands on the magazine without her noticing and consequently teasing him about it.</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>*</p>
</div>It was one of those evenings Hitsugaya had come to like best; they were sitting in the back of Byakuya's manor, facing the garden (which looked absolutely impressive during any season, especially against a dark sky filled with stars) and enjoying a cup of tea together. They never talked much, but today in particular he had been rather quiet, constantly contemplating how to bring up the content of the magazine article without it sounding stupid. Hitsugaya was so lost in his thoughts that he almost didn't hear Byakuya's question.<p>“Do you want to talk about it?”</p><p>“What?,” he asked, almost sounding guilty.</p><p>“There's something on your mind.” Byakuya's voice was quiet, even, as he set down his tea cup. “Is it something I can help you with?”</p><p>A smile tugged at Hitsugaya's lips. It was so typical of Byakuya to express his concern like this.</p><p>“You could.” Hitsugaya turned to him fully, thinking his next actions through for a few moments and then holding out his hand. “Give me your hand.”</p><p>Byakuya reached for his hand without hesitation, a hint of curiosity in his eyes. His hand might've been larger than Hitsugaya's, but it was more slender. Hitsugaya had once pointed that out to him, but Byakuya hadn't known how to react back then.</p><p>Gathering his courage, Hitsugaya squeezed the other's hand three times before letting go of it.</p><p>An eyebrow raised, Byakuya looked at him questioningly. “What are you doing?”</p><p>“Three squeezes means 'I love you'.”</p><p>It's easier to say it like this, Hitsugaya realised, but the blush still burned brightly on the tips of his ears. They've never used the word love before, and the mere fact of being the first to say it made his heart beat as rapidly against his rips as if it wanted to escape and hide far in the outskirts of Seireitei.</p><p>Byakuya had been surprised at his words—he could tell from the way his eyes had widened ever so slightly—but now he showed him a small smile.</p><p>“Is that so,” Byakuya said more to himself than to him, took his hand into his and squeezed it gently, three times like he had done, before he tenderly ran a hand through Hitsugaya's hair.</p>
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>*</p>
</div>Byakuya wasn't the most expressive person out there, and despite some people hoping otherwise, he wasn't planning on changing that. Reaching his current level of self-control hadn't been easy for him. He took great pride in his composure and, quite frankly, didn't care whether others were disturbed by him not showing every emotion on his face. Against all scepticism, he did feel the full span of human emotions—he just chose not to be affected by most of them.<p>Which is why he greatly appreciated the gesture Hitsugaya had introduced to him. It was perfect to express what both of them had trouble saying out loud. At least for him that had been his main concern; while Byakuya was more than certain about his own feelings, he found himself unable to properly put them into words.</p><p>Now he used this secret little gesture as often as he could. No one apart from Hitsugaya knew what it meant—although he did catch Matsumoto looking at him with hardly concealed amusement a few times—and this discretion was something he cherished. It didn't even have to be Hitsugaya's hand; he could just squeeze his shoulder three times and watch with much more well-hidden amusement how flustered his partner became.</p><p>Byakuya would never tell him how much he loved watching his ears and cheeks turn red at his silent expression of affection, because he was sure Hitsugaya was aware of that. Their silent understanding of each other was probably what he valued most in their relationship.</p><p>Neither of them needed to exclaim their love from the roofs of their division's barracks. Especially not when three squeezes were more than enough to express what they felt.</p>
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